THE CORE WAR IV: Finale Prelude
Ice Tribe Fortress – Night
Axel burst through the doors of the meeting chamber, dragging a limp Perditus by the left foot. All present upon his entry whirled at the intrusion, including Certavus, Gelu, a few warriors, and several Agori. Some were cautious with a member of the Fire Tribe in their midst, others simply ignorant of the temporary distraction.
Certavus stood up from his chair and walked to Axel, pleased.
"Here you are, General," Axel said, tossing the limp Perditus with minimal effort.
"Impressive, agent," said the Ice Tribe commander. He turned to the guards on either side of the chamber and motioned for them to remove the hostage. They complied, and as they committed their duty, Certavus laid a hand on Axel's shoulder. "I am pleased with your contributions to our forces. Your fee will be paid in full in soon." Axel smirked as the leader retracted his hand. "Our session will close in a few minutes."
Certavus shifted direction to his chair when Axel's hand came upon the former's shoulder. "I appreciate the reward, but I have other loose ends to tie up." The ice warrior turned, confused, and was sent hurtling into the crowd of Agori and warriors by a punch to his armored face.
Chaos ensued as guards aimed their crossbows at the offender. Axel smirked, showing feral whites. Certavus got to his feet quickly and brandished his grand blade. "In the name of-!"
"Sorry to disappoint you, Certavus, but my employers had the higher bidder," said the fire warrior. "And by the way, my name isn't Axel." He raised his hand beyond the front of his body. "And it's not Lea either. Those were bogus identities." The warrior summoned both chakrams in his one hand. Then they morphed into one, large shuriken, all black with red tips. Axel smirked once more. "I'm a product of avarice, the desire to become a more perfect being since my people were exiled!
Certavus was still stunned at the past several seconds that had transpired. The last statement had caught him off guard the most. "You're of the Iron Tribe!" The white-clad warrior poised himself into a defensive stance. Who is he? What does he want from us? From me?
"Bingo!" mocked the shuriken wielder. "Took ya a little while, didn't it?" Axel, whatever his name was, then widened his eyes as if he forgot something. "Oh, I never told you my true name, did I?" He casually twirled the spiked disc around his finger as he stood with a hand on his hip. "It's Feiron." Feiron aimed a finger at his temple. "Got it memorized?"
With that, the bright red of his armor faded to a dull orange.
Certavus had enough. "Slot him!" The guards complied and unleashed a barrage of arrows and bolts at the traitorous iron welder.
Feiron dodged the lethal projectiles by running at an alarming speed, a pace that left after-images of the character behind him. The Iron warrior ran circles around Certavus, who was in the center of the room. With every few seconds, one or two of the bodyguards would be cut down in varying fashions.
Within thirty seconds, the only living beings in the assembly room were the assassin and the leader of the Ice Tribe. The latter's face twisted into a snarl, one that failed to instill fear into his adversary.
What is he? Certavus asked himself. How does he have these unnatural abilities? He charged, Feiron dodged to the left, and Certavus followed with a slash in that direction. The warrior of the Iron Tribe tumbled back and rolled up to the curved window that took up an entire wall. He then made a 'come hither' gesture.
Certavus glared. He relaxed with a slow exhale, letting his sword fall to his side. He saw Feiron's brow rise in bewilderment and he let down his guard as well.
"What do you want from me?" Certavus yelled. "What could you possibly win through killing me?"
"Why would I tell you? That'll only take the fun out of this." Feiron sighed, his malevolent grin turning into a frown. "But if you must know, I only want to kill you to put the Ice Tribe in disarray." The warrior charged at Certavus at supersonic speed and rammed him through the doors of the gathering room. The leader of the Ice Tribe collided with the wall and slumped to the ground, stunned and leaving a crack in the wall.
"But I don't play favorites," Feiron continued, "The other leaders will be eliminated as well." He knelt down and lifted Certavus's lolling head up with two fingers. Red eyes looked down into blue ones. My brethren have been left to rot in the wilderness because of your prejudice. Rather than give us a helping hand, you and the rest of civilization forced us to go into hiding and survive!" Feiron released his supporting hand and back-handed the leader of the Ice Tribe with its counterpart. "And for what? An illness that probably never existed!"
"We … we had our reasons," breathed Certavus. He tried to stand upright, but the shock from the collision left him weak. His body hurt, his mind still foggy, Certavus simply lay against the wall, looking into the eyes of his assailant.
In those eyes were flames that held desire, the determination to set things right for Feiron's people. But they also had the look of a being whose sanity had been lost due to unknown forces. This Glatorian was troubled, and needed help.
Help for this poor creature seemed next-to-impossible at the moment. And help for Certavus himself was just as scarce.
Feiron grabbed Certavus by the throat one-handed and brought him helmet-to-helmet. "I'm sure those were legitimate reasons, Popsicle." A shuriken came into the white-clad Glatorian's vision.
This is it. I die here, Certavus thought, Gelu, lead our people to the best of your abilities.
DONK!
Feiron's grip on the Ice Tribe commander slackened, releasing the latter. Another moment passed with Feiron standing dazed in the hallway until he collapsed into an unconscious heap. Perditus stood behind the limp body, breathing heavily with a crowbar held up to strike again.
Certavus stood up against the wall, heaving as he took in the sudden change in battle. He looked at Feiron's form lying still on the stone floor, then up at the relaxing Perditus. Certavus was confused; this stranger, let alone one of the Fire Tribe, saved the leader of his enemies? Even as a prisoner, this warrior lent a hand to his captors?
Brave lad.
"Are you alright, Certavus?" asked Perditus, holding out his hand. The Ice tribe leader took it.
"I am." Certavus dusted himself off and retrieved his sword. He held it in a firm grip as he headed for the stairwell. He had only gone a few meters when Perditus's voice called out to him.
"You're not going to kill me?" asked the pilot.
"I don't eliminate my prisoners." Certavus replied as he turned. His ice blue eyes made contact with the youth's. "Besides, wouldn't you consider this my token of gratitude?" He paused to let the pilot absorb the message. "I suggest you make use of it."
Certavus observed Perditus walk and shed the distance between the pair. When the latter spoke, his voice possessed strength. "There is more you should tell me about this assassin." He gestured to Feiron, still out cold. "I've heard varied rumors about him. Some say he's a bounty hunter, other's say he's a defector from my Tribe."
Certavus raised a brow. "How could you know any of this if you were incapacitated?"
"I was fading in and out of reality, sir." Perditus continued. "But please, tell me the truth. I want to know what he is. And why there is a bounty on my head." His voice sounded almost pleading with that strength it always held.
The leader of the Ice Tribe army laid a hand on the pilot's shoulder. "I would tell you, but I can't."
Perditus's eyes widened. "W-Why?"
"Because I think I should finish the story myself, hotrod." Feiron chimed from behind. Certavus pulled Perditus with almost enough force to make him lose his balance as they ran down the stone hallway.
Behind them, Feiron mockingly added, "What? Don't care for story time anymore?" he laughed manically as he casually walked after the two warriors.
(Cue Gulp's Overlook from Spyro 2 Ripto's Rage/Gateway to Glimmer)
CHAPTER 5 COMING SOON!